Heineken and Facebook recently announced a global partnership, which will see the two companies collaborate on digital campaigns for Heineken's brands around the world. Through the agreement, Facebook will provide Heineken with a global marketing platform that reaches millions of its users, the company's expertise in building long-term relationships between brands and their audiences, as well as access to the social network's latest products.

In short, Facebook will be consulting and training Heineken employees to use the service. To start, the Amsterdam-based brewing giant has launched an online campaign aimed at promoting responsible drinking.

The Heineken Facebook Page is already the largest for any beer brand with over 4.7 million Likes. Two of the company's other leading brands, Kingfisher and Dos Equis, are also in the top seven beer brands (when counting number of Likes). All content posted by the company's Facebook Pages is in line with the advertising codes and guidelines which govern the communication of alcohol products, including those created to avoid underage exposure.

"Brands rely on Facebook to build essential connections with people and their friends," Joanna Shields, Vice President & Managing Director EMEA for Facebook, said in a statement. "Heineken has always been a true innovator when it comes to giving their brands an authentic voice, and together with Facebook they can now extend that human touch to 800 million people around the world."

"As our adult consumers are increasingly spending more time on digital space and social media, it is important that our brands are active in this environment," Alexis Nasard, Chief Commercial Officer at Heineken, said in a statement. "Our partnership with Facebook is another significant development in our communication strategy as we continue to look for innovative ways for our brands to ignite the digital conversation and connect with our consumers."